KANSAS FAMILY LAW

Grounds for Divorce, Separate Maintenance or Annulment

1.  Grounds for Divorce or Separate Maintenance

2.  Grounds for Annulment

3.   A divorce and annulment are basically the same except for grounds.  A divorce and separate maintenance are basically the same except that in separate maintenance cases neither party can marry another person, the parties still have a married status for taxes, there can be continuing health insurance coverage, and each party can be responsible for the other party's medical bills in some cases.        

4.  The person filing a divorce (but not separate maintenance or annulment) must have lived in Kansas 60 days before filing the action or be stationed at a military base in Kansas.  If the other party does not reside in Kansas, there may be limitations on the power of the Kansas court to issue orders involving persons or property not located or having significant contacts in Kansas.

5.  The Court may divide all property and debt of the parties, including retirement accounts and professional goodwill, regardless of the form of title or how or when acquired, based on a division in kind; giving property to one and money to the other; or sale of property and divide proceeds of sale.  The Court uses the following information to divide the property:

The division of property cannot be modified by the Court once agreed upon by the parties except for very unusual circumstances or for child support, custody and visitation.

Maintenance or spousal support normally can be for no more than 121 months and must be fair, just and equitable under all the circumstances and is only possible if the parties are married.  If the parties agree to maintenance, it cannot be increased or decreased without the consent of both parties.  If the Court awarded this support in a trial, then it can be decreased by the Court but never increased without the consent of both parties.

Procedures:

Uncontested Divorce:

The parties agree to settle all matters and enter into a settlement agreement and, if the parties agree, a divorce can be granted immediately rather than waiting for 60 days after the petition is filed and neither party has to appear in court to testify.

Contested Divorce:

1. Petition is filed along with restraining orders which control the parties and their property and debts and sets temporary maintenance and child support, custody and visitation.

2. This paperwork must be received by the other party.

3. Other party has twenty days to respond to the petition once served with the petition.

4. There can be brief hearings in the courthouse before a Judge on these temporary matters.

5. There can be formal requests for factual information.

6. There can be a meeting of the attorneys and the Judge called a Discovery Conference to identify the documents, assets, debts, potential witnesses, and subject matter of the testimony.

7. There is another meeting of all the parties, their attorneys, and a Judge’s administrative assistant called a Pre-trial Conference to identify problem areas and then prepare for trial regarding those problem areas.

8. The trials are short usually lasting less than a day.

9. There can be appeals but they are usually unsuccessful.

General Information:

1.  Health insurance for a spouse is terminated upon the divorce being final but there are continuation and conversion rights and the children can still be covered.  It is important that the insurance company receive the proper notification of the divorce.

2.  The right to collect child and spousal support can stop if certain steps are not taken when payments are not made.  Therefore, it is important that you contact an attorney if payments are not made promptly.  Interest can be charged if these debts are not paid on time.  Failure to pay support can have severe economic consequences even beyond the amount ordered by the court.

3.  The case remains at the original Kansas court unless the parties agree to a change or a change to a different county is ordered by the Court.  Usually six months residency is needed in another state before that state's courts can consider issues regarding children.

4.  Adoption requires the natural parent's consent unless there is no support or contact with the child for two consecutive years.

5.  Support payments should be paid through the Kansas Payment Center.  If any of the children have received government aid, then that agency may have a claim to the child support.  Child support stops as a matter of law when the child or either parent dies, the child is adopted, the child changes residence, or the child turns 18 unless the child is still in high school and then it lasts until the end of that school year.

6.  Usually the Sedgwick County Court Trustee monitors, enforces and collects support payments but a collection fee for this service is deducted from the child support.  However, the parties can agree that there will be no Income Withholding Order.

7.  It is advisable to have a will prepared if there are any minor children.  All paperwork such as insurance policies and title documents should be changed after the divorce.

8.  These proceedings are public record and therefore available for inspection during regular business hours at the Courthouse.

9.  Remarriage can occur thirty days or later after the divorce becomes final.